Speed-regulator for automatic musical instruments.



PATENTED JUNE 2, 1908.

E. DE KLBIST. I SPEED REGULATOR FOR AUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

APPLIGATION FILED JAE. 13, 1 906.

2 SHEETS$HEEIT 1.

Wi/ lrieg'xesf I Z42 M My? 52126816? a Few 5y M GI PATENTED JUNE 2,1908.

E DE KLEIST. SPEED REGULATOR FOR AUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

APPLICATION TILED JANJS, 1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Wam um:

EUGENE DE KLE'Is'r, or NORTH TONAWANDA, NEwYoRK.

SPEED-REGULATOR FOB AUTOMATIC MUSICAL; INSTRUMENTS.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, EUGENE DE KLErsT, a

citizen of the United States, residing at North Tonawanda, in the countyof Niagara and State of New York, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Speed-Regulators for Automatic Musical Instruments, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the means employed in self-playing pneumaticpianos and other automatic musical instruments for regulating the speedof the air motor which propels the perforated music sheet and moreparticularly to regulating devices of this kind which produce arelativel rapid. action of the motor in automatica y rewinding thesheet.

The object of my invention is to provide a.

' speed regulator ofthis character which is sim 1e and compact inconstruction and reliab e in action.

v In the accompanying drawings consisting of 2-sheets: Figure 1 is afragmentary front elevation of an automatic piano embodying theinvention. Fig. 2 is a enlarged side ele-.

- vation of the speed-regulator with its rear board removed showing theposition of the arts when the instrument is silent. Fig. 3 1s a similarelevation of the re ulator viewed from its'o osite side with itsontboard removed. 1g. 4 is a vertical longitudinal section in line 4-4.,Fig. 5, showing thepneumatic of the rewind-valve locked. Fig. 5 is atransverse section in line 55 Fig: 3. Fig. 6 is a horizontal section inline 66, Fig. 3.

Fig. 7 is a section s milar to Fig. 5, showing a modification of theinvention.

wound and O the air'motor for driving said rollers.- The motor may be ofany suitable type employing a p urality of bellows which actsuccessively upon a crank shaft to impart rotary motion thereto. Anysuitable or well known automatic reversing gear being included in thetransmitting mechanism be-- tween the motor and said rollers forrewinding the music sheet.

Dis the speed re ulator which is preferably located immediate in frontof the motor 0. It consists of a'box or case which is divided hy anupright partition d and a horizontal partition (1 into three chambers EE E Specification of Letters Patent. Application flledlanuary 13,;1906.I Serial No. 295,916.

- thus e Patented June 2, 1908.

which may be termed exhaust, regulatingand rewind chambers,respectively. These partitions extend lengthwise of the. case and theregulating chamber is on the rear side thereof and provided in its rearwall with an opening f which communicateswith the mainexhaus't channel fof the air motor asshown inFig.5. 5 I

Theexhaust chamber E 1s provided at one end with a horizontal exhaustchannel'g which is connectedwith the main suction bellows of theinstrument (not shown). b a hose or conduit g'.. The regulating chain orE communicates with the exhaust chamber E by a port It controlled bya.v'alve hprefer.

ably of the. sliding type, which is guided in ways 72. secured to thepartition (I. The port h is tapered lengthwise of the valve h and thelatter contains a narrow vertical portlh".

which registers therewith and is as long as the greatest width of thetapering port. By this construction, only so-much of the tapering portis. uncovered as registers with the valve-port and the effective area ofthe latter is increased or diminished as itis brought opposite a wideor-narrow portion of the taperin port by the movements of the valve,austing a greater or less quantity .of air from the bellows of the airmotor and varying its speed accordingly.

The regulating valve hniay-be operated by any suitable means. In theconstruction shown in the"drawings, it is operated by a haid lever Iconnected with the valve by a re t.

The rewind chamber E islocated above the exhaust chamber E and connectedther'e- Similar letters of reference indicate corre- With by acomparatively large ort jarranged in the horizontal partition and withthe regulating chamberE by one or more ports 7'.

To the up erside of the port 1' is ap lied a rewind-Va ve J 1(preferably of the. rodlring type which is close by a spring 7' andopened by a small bellows or. motor pneumatic. K having its movableboard rovided with an arm k which is connected with the tail of saidvalve by a. sticker k".

on the case of the speed regulator and controlled by one of the units orvalve mechan-. isms of the pneumatic action of the instrument and aperforation of the music sheet, in the same manner. as the motorpneumatics of the piano hammers.

76 indicates the exhaust tube which leads As shown in the draw- -1ngs,this pneumatic is mounted horizontally from the pneumatic K to thecustomary wind chest.

L indi ates a locking device for temporarily holding the rewind-valveopen. This device preferably consists of a vertically swinging :wl orcatch pivoted at its lower end to the "e of the pneumatic K and adaptedto inl cl: with the arm it when the said pneunratic is collapsed, asshown in Fig. l, the catch being automatically drawn into engagementwith said. arm by a spring Z.

hi an unlocking bellows or pneumatic forwithdrawing the catch L out ofengagement with the bellows arm. ll: and permitting the rewind valve toclose. This pneumatic is arranged in an upright position at the righthand end the case, and the arm at of its movable board is connected withthe upper end of the or ch L by a rod in. This rod is free to slide on.the catch towards the left in Fig. 3 so as not to affect the catch whenthe pneumatic M is collapsed but withdraws the catch when said pnuematicexpands, the rod being provided for this purpose with a stop nut orbutton arranged to engage the left side of the catch. The pneumaticcommunicates with the exhaust channel g by a passage n so as to remaincollapsed. as long as the instrument plays. I

The operation of the speed regulator is as follows: When the mainexhaust bellows of the instrument is operated, the unlocking pneumatic Mis collapsed as shown by dotted lines in Fig. .3 and by full lines inFig. 4, the same remaining in that condition as long as the instrumentplays, thus moving the button m a suflicieut distance in advance of thecatch L to permit it to swing to the left into engagement with thearm'of the valve-opening pneumatic K- when the latter is collapsed.During the playing of the instrument, the lastnamed pneumatic isexpanded and the rewind-valve is closed. The air is now exhausted fromthe motor 0 through the passage f, regulating chamber E- valve port it",tapering port it, exhaustchamber E, channel 9 and conduit g, and thequantity of air exhausted from the bellows of the air-n1otor in a giventime is controlled by the regulating valve as hereinbefore described,thus governing the speed of the motor and of the traveling music sheetaccordingly.

l/Vhen the music sheet has been fully wound upon the take-up roller, theperforation in the music sheet which controls th: valve openingpneumatic K registers with the corresponding trackerduct, causing saidpneumatic to be collapsed and opening the rewind valve, the movableboard of this pneumatic being at the same time locked in 1ts depressedposition by the automatic catch L. The air is now exhausted from themotor not only through the tapering port It and the valve port 7L2, butmainly through the large port 7', the rewind chamber and ate morerapidly and by means of tl the ports 7'. This causes motor to or ternaryreversing gear to quickly c music sheet upon the roller i Lcr 1c musicsheet has been rewound the electric or other motor which operates themain exhaust bellows is stopped autornat' otherwise thus allowing theunlocl matic M to expand under the action o its expansion spring andrr-atracting tl 1o catch L. This permits the valvc-opening pneumatic Kto expand and there nd-valvc J lo close, restoring the parts to tlamroriginal position.

By providing means for locking the pneuiatio K of the rewind-valve inits collapsed. condition, I avord the formation of a slot in.

the music sheet of sufficient length to he this pneumatic collapsed.during the enti period of rewinding the sheet, which would otherwise benecessary.

If desired the passage which connects the air motor with the speedregulator may communicate with the rewind chamber as shown atf in Fig.7. In this modified constri tiou when the rewind valve is closed the airis cxhauetcd from. the motor 0 through the rewind-chamber E ports y"regulating (illztilk ber E and regulating ports lfh, while when therewind valve is opened, the air is ex hausted directly through the porty vvithout passing through the regulating chain bcr.

/Vlnle I have herein shown and describe l a rocking rewind valve and asliding regulating valve, other types of valves may obviously besubstituted therefor without departing from the scope and spirit of thevO-lltiOll, and I donot therefore wish to e the particular constructionof ti parts of the speed regulator.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a speed regulator for a pneumatic musical instrument, thecombination of an air motor, a case containing an exhaust chamber, aregulating chamber connected with the exhaust chamber and a rewindchamber connected with said exhaust and regulating chambers, one of thetwo lastnamed chambers communicating with the air-motor, a regulatingvalve controlling the id other assa e between the exhaust chamber and Pa the regulating chamber, arewind valve controlling the passage betweenthe exhaust chamber and the rewind. chamber, and means for operatingsaid valves, substantially set forth.

2. 'In a speed regulator for a pneumatic -musical instrument, thecombination of a pneumatic action, an air motor, a case con.- taining anexhaust chamber, a regulating chamber connected with the exhaust chamherand a rewind chamber connected with said exhaust and regulatingchambers, the motor being connected with said re ulating chamber, aregulating valve control ing the passage between the exhaust chamberand.

.trolling the passage between the exhaust chamber and the rewindchamber, and an operating pneumatic for the rewind valve controlled bythe neumatic action, substantially as set forth.

3. Ina speed re ulator for the air motor of pneumatic musica instrument,the combina tion ofa pneumatic action, a case containing an exhaustchamber, a regulating chamber connected with the exhaust chamber andarewind chamber connected with said exhaust and re'ul'a'ti'ng chambers,a'regulating valve contro ing the passage between the exhaust chamberand the regulating chamber, a rewind valve controlling the assagebetween the exhaust chamber and t e rewindchamber, a pneumatic foropening the rewind valve controlled by the 'pn'eum-atic'action, meansfor retaining the rewind valve in its open position, and means forreleasing said retaining means, substantially as set forth. I 4. In aspeed regulator for the air motor of a pneumatic musical instrument, thecombination of a pneumatic action, a case containing an exhaust chamber,a regulatin chamber connected with the exhaust cham er and a rewindchamber connected with said exhaust and re ulating chambers, aregulating ing said pneumatic in its collapsed condition,

and a releasing device, -actmg upon said locking device, substantiallyas set forth.

5. In a speed regulator for the air motor of a pneumatic musicalinstrument, the combination of a pneumatic action, acase containing anexhaust chamber, a regulatin chamber connected with the exhaust'cham erand a rewind chamber connected with said exhaust and re ulatingchambers, a regulating valve contro ling the passage between the exhaustchamber and the regulating chamber, a rewind valve controlling thepassage between the exhaust chamber and the rewind chamber, a pneumaticfor opening the rewind-valve controlled by the pneumatic action, anautomatic locking device for re- 1 taining said pneumatic in itscollapsed condition and a second pneumatic for releasing said lockingdevice, substantially as set forth.

6. In a speed regulator for the air motor of a pneumatic musicalinstrument, the combination of a pneumatic action, a case containing anexhaust chamber, a regulating cham ber connected. with the exhaustchamber and a rewind chamber connected with said exhaust and regulatingchambers, a regulating valve controlling the passage between the exhaustchamber and the regulating charm her, a rewind valve controlling thepassage between the exhaust chamber and the rewind chamber a pneumaticfor opening the rewind-valve controlled by the neumatic action, anautomatic locking device for retaining said pneumatic in its collapsedcondition, and a second pneumatic communieating with said exhaustchamber and controlling said locking device, substantially as set forth.

7. In a speed regulator for the air motor of a pneumatic musicalinstrument, the combination of a pneumatic action, a case containing anexhaust chamber, a regulatin chamber connected with the exhaust cham erand a rewind chamber connected with said exhaust and regulatingchambers, a regulating valve controlling the passage between the exhaustchamber and the regulating chamber, a rewind valve controlling thepassage between the exhaust chamber and the rewind chamber, a pneumaticfor opening said rewind-valve controlled by the pneumatic action, apivoted catch arranged to interlock with the movable board of saidpneumatic and an unlocking pneumatic connected with said catch,substantially as set forth. I

'8. In a-speed regulator for the air motor of a pneumatic musicalinstrument, the combination of a pneumatic action, a case containing anexhaust chamber, a regulating chamber connected with the exhaust chamberand a rewind chamber connected with said exhaust and regulatingchambers, a regulating valve controlling the passage between the exhaustchamber and the regulating chamher, a rewind valve controlling thepassage between the exhaust chamber and the rewind chamber, a pneumaticfor opening said rewind valve controlled by the pneumatic action, apivoted catch arranged to interlock with the movable board of saidpneumatic,

an unlocking pneumatic and a connection between the last named pneumaticand said catch capable of sliding on the catch in one direction,substantially as set forth] 9. In a speed regulator for the air motor ofa pneumatic musical instrument, the combination of a case containing anexhaust chamber, a regulating chamber connected with the exhaust chamberand a rewind chamber connected with said exhaust and regulatingchambers, a regulating valve-controlling the passage between the exhaustchamber and the regulating chamber, a rocking rewind valve controllingthe passage between the exhaust chamber and the rewind chamber, apneumatic for opening the rewind-valve mounted horizontally on saidcase, a locking device for retaining said pneumatic in its colla sedcondition and a second pneumatic for re easing said locking device,communicating with said exhaust chamber, substantially as set forth.

10. In a speed regulator for a pneumatic musical instrument, thecombination of an chambers, and means for operating said 10 on motor, acase contalnlng an exhaust Valves, substantmlly as set forth.

chamber, a regulating chamber con11nunicat- W'itness my hand this 6thday of January, ing with said exhaust chember and the main {1906.exhaustchannel of the an motor, and a re- EUGENE DE KLEIST wind chamberconnected with said exhaust and re ulating chambers, Valves respectivelyWitnesses:

contro ling the passages between the exhaust C. F. GEYER, chamber andthe regulating and i ewind E. M. GRAHAM.

